Dear Stuart, it is a nice former genuine farmer house with a nice view. What a good air, very good fresh water, perfect silence. nicely equipped, kitchen is perfect and you may try your cooking excellence in every respect, we sportsmen and sportswomen had a very good time during our regatta event. and we had a lot of fun in your "castle". many thanks for your perfect furnishings. enjoyed it very much. Hilko and friends

The Alpine Retreat is set in a rural spot around 30 minutes walk or a few minutes drive from the centre of Bled and Stuart has left the house well equipped with information and maps. The house was spotlessly clean, spacious and had everything you need for a self catering holiday. I'd highly recommend it and Stuart has been incredibly helpful throughout the booking process and beyond. This is what we did if it helps! We are a family of 5 with 3 active teenagers so they didn't mind walking in and out of Bled most days and they took advantage of the many activities on offer from Bled itself. We went canyoning, white water rafting and did a 3 hour mountain bike ride with a guide (went through 3Glav Adventures) which was just fabulous. Much easier than stopping to map read every 5 minutes! It's easy to rent kayaks on the lake so we interspersed kayaking and rowing with walking, swimming and lazing about around the lake. We went to Lake Bohinj on a few occasions too - around 40 minutes drive away and a gentler and quieter alternative to Bled. Stuart gave detailed directions for many walks ranging from 1 hour upwards and they were a perfect way to explore the stunning countryside right on the doorstep so we did a couple of those and enjoyed them thoroughly. Vintgar Gorge is just a half an hour's walk away and we'd thoroughly recommend doing that walk early in your stay to familiarise yourself with what's around. We also headed off early one morning to Venice and had a great day there. The trip is pretty easy by road if you set off early enough (we left by 6am) and takes around 3.5hours. Park at Tronchetto for 21 Euros for the day. Ljubljana is well worth a trip too and so easy to get to. It took around 45 minutes to get to the centre and it's so pretty. Busy without being mobbed (unlike Venice!), lots of lovely bars and cafes and totally pedestrianised so nice and quiet to walk around. We took a gentle boat trip along the canal which was a fun way to see this beautiful town. I would happily spend more time there. Zasip itself has a good pub and a small supermarket so your daily needs are covered and there's a pizzeria "up the hill" which looks good but we never used it! The only negative point I can say is that the house is situated right next to a cattle shed (and the cows are in there permanently) so there's the occasional rural smell associated with that but if you're out and about all day, it shouldn't worry you too much. Depends on which way the wind is blowing too! They're incredibly quiet, so noise is not an issue.

We spent 4 days in this house during xmas holiday. We were 4 adults and 1 baby (20months) and we stay really well. The house is big and confortable, with everything we need in! Also for the baby, very well equipped. The country side around in quite and beautiful. I would like to come back in summer or with snow all around!

We enjoyed the house and the surrounding area. This was a nice location for taking day trips to Ljubliana and several hiking areas. It was nice to be close to Bled but not in the middle of the tourist area. Stuart, the property owner, was very responsive to all of our questions. He sends out a large packet of information before you come to the house. Make sure you bring out his directions before you come because it would have been very hard to find the house and the parking space without them. However, his directions are perfect, so keep them with you! We hope others enjoy their vacation to Slovenia as much as we did!

The house was a great place to share with my extended family and friends visiting us through the month of July 2015. Stuart is a great host and organiser. Everything went smoothly and with the least of hassle. The place is well equipped, village is nice a quiet, people friendly and Bled is a walking distance.

Perfect location in Zasip near Lake Bled. We were 3 couples travelling together and our stay at Alpine Retreat was one of the highlights of our European tour in September 2015. We all wish that we could have stayed longer. The southern views over Lake Bled are quite stunning and constantly changing. The house was hard to recognise from the road as the outside photos on the website are of the back of the house. It was a challenge parking our 9 seater people mover safely in the space allocated on the narrow road but we managed. Stuart has done a great job in modernizing the house while maintaining the feel of an historic Slovenian farmhouse. Most facilities are very good and include a large flat screen TV, dishwasher, washing machine and good internet access. Bed rooms are spacious and the upstairs bathroom is excellent and quite modern. However, the downstairs bathroom is very basic. This fact would not deter us from returning to stay at the Alpine Retreat again. A lot of local information regarding drives, walks and other activities can be found on the book shelves in the house which was very helpful. Not to be missed is the Vintgar Gorge walk. There is a small supermarket in the village just a short walk away, an excellent restaurant serving local speciality foods and a pizzeria. We have all brought back to Australia fond memories of our stay and hope to return one day.

We can't speak highly enough of our stay in the Alpine Retreat. Booking with Stuart was easy and checking in with Ana from ThinkSlovenia was very efficient. They also were extremely helpful when we had a hiccup with our prior accommodation and needed to add an extra night's accommodation. The house is lovely inside with everything that a big family or group could need. From washers, dishwashers, wifi, satellite tv and a HUGE comfy lounge for all of us to collapse on after a big day's sightseeing. My only comment on the car parking is it's a bit hairy - I was worried about the small spots, but it was all fine....I guess we are used to big roads and big parking spots (which is the opposite to Bled and Zasip!) We would also highly recommend the pizza on the hill. We did the walk once (amazing views) and then drove it from then! We would happily come and stay again to the beautiful area and Alpine Retreat

We stayed with friends and family over the new year. The house was charming - a great mix of modern comforts and traditional character. It is in a lovely village in a great location giving you easy access to many things to do and see. You have a choice of numerous ski resorts within 45 mins drive including Vogel and Kransjka Gora and Krvavec. We also enjoyed: dog sledding in the mountains near Trevisio (just over the Italian border) which is a beautiful area; scenic train journey from Podhom (1 mile down road) to Nova Gorica; sledging at Pokuljuka; horse riding near Lake Bohinj and a beautiful walk around Lake Bled. The house has study with lots of information, guidebooks and maps and also wifi access which is great to check the weather forecast. Would also strongly recommend Pizza Jurcek at top of hill in Zasip - tasty pizzas, friendly service, children's play area and great views from terrace. If you fancy something further afield Restuarant Lectar in Radovljica is a real treat plus gingerbread shop. Overall a great house in a wonderful alpine location.

The house is genuinely fantastic. It is bright, airy and perfectly traditional. However the photos do make the house seem much bigger than it actually is. The view of the outside of the house is from the back, going down the road which leads to Lake Bled (a very short and pretty drive from the house). If you come through Zasip the house is completely unrecognisable. It does look stunning, but in a very different way. Also the pictures make the house seem very isolated. In fact it is in the heart of the old village, right next to the church. This was not a problem for us however. The rooms were spacious and well presented and they all had a bona fide country feel to them. The house has a huge DVD library, very useful for nights with the kids, and a plethora of local information. The only downside, which (in all fairness) was not claimed in the advertisement, was the lack of outdoor space. There was a narrow balcony (with stunning views, I hasten to add) which could only be accessed through the downstairs bathroom and a small garden which was accessed from the cellar of you had to walk round the house to get to it. Despite all of this the house is unarguably beautiful, well laid out and very spacious. The 3 (and a half) bedrooms were perfect. The loft was really quiet and peaceful. It was also quite separated from the main house, absolutely perfect for kids. All in all a smashing house in a fabulous location (although the Pizzeria is quite a trek away).

My family and I (6 adults) stayed at the Alpine Retreat for a week in June. We found that every room of the beautifully converted house had exactly what was needed for a content and comfortable holiday. A very well stocked kitchen, lounge room with DVD's, books, etc), and a gorgeous upstairs bathroom with stunning views which can also be enjoyed from many other parts of the house. We enjoyed being in Zasip, a few kilometers away from Bled. It meant we were close to the main tourist attractions but that we were also drawn to other quieter but equally lovely parts of the region. Highly recommend.